The New Crop – Rep. Tom Murry

The Republican takeover of the N.C. legislature, the first time the GOP has led both houses since 1898, is a huge shift in power that's brought a lot of new faces, and people new to doing business on Jones Street. In what we hope is a regular feature this session, N.C. Policy Watch will try to talk with some of the newest members to offer a bit more insight on who they are and what they plan on doing this session in Raleigh. This will be an ongoing feature, with the goal of profiling all the new members. Haven't been contacted for your profile yet? New legislators can contact reporter Sarah Ovaska at sarah@ncpolicywatch.com.

Civic organizations: member of College Park Baptist Church in Cary, volunteers with local Community Emergency Response Team

Biggest political influencer: his father and James Madison

Hobbies: plays guitar and golf

Any pet peeves? "People who judge folks before they get to know them."

How you plan on unwinding from the legislative grind? "Spending time with my kids. My kids provide instant balance."

Why'd you run? I got passed by people who liked my record as a councilman in Morrisville. A lot of folks like to run because of their own ambitions, but I like it when citizens say you should have a bigger role here. They're the best ones to give you a promotion."

What are you expecting from this session? "I'm expecting we'll do business a little differently. Hopefully operate the General Assembly like you operate a business and be open. Change structure of how business gets down on Jones Street and be more oriented from the grassroots up, not from the power structure down."

What (policy-wise) keeps you up at night? "I'm a pharmacist so I'm very close to the health care issue. I want to make sure we're getting our best return on the dollar. We need to focus on outcome, not just how much money it costs. We haven't been very outcome-oriented in our medical services."

About the author

Sarah Ovaska-Few, former Investigative Reporter for N.C. Policy Watch for five years, conducted investigations and watchdog reports into issues of statewide importance. Ovaska-Few was also staff writer and reporter for six years with the News & Observer in Raleigh, where she reported on governmental, legal, political and criminal justice issues.